The present invention relates to a method for the dispensing of a filling material, especially a liquid detergent, from a container provided for this purpose into a material to be washed during a mechanical washing process wherein the container with the filling material is subjected to the washing process, filling material being delivered from the container during this process.
Furthermore, the present invention concerns a container for dispensing filling material, especially a liquid detergent, during a mechanical washing process into the material to be washed wherein at least one delivery opening is provided, as well as at least one control portion which vacates and, respectively, blocks the delivery opening by a sliding action.
A method of the aforementioned type has been known from U.S. Pat. No. 3,399,806. According to this U.S. patent, the dispensing of the filling material is regulated by moisture during the washing step. For this purpose, a diaphragm is arranged over a delivery opening of a container, this diaphragm being dissolved by the moisture, be it that of the filling material or of the washing water, after appropriate protective measures have been eliminated for activating the container, these protective measures preventing premature dissolution or maceration of the aforementioned diaphragm.
Such a procedure is not without problems from the viewpoint of handling technique, in that such a diaphragm shows low mechanical stability. Consequently there is the danger that rupturing of the aforementioned diaphragm will occur during handling of the container even outside of the washing process and accordingly, with the above-mentioned protective measures having been neutralized, the filling material will escape directly to the outside.
Problems are likewise encountered in providing a moisture-sensitive diaphragm regarding the storage of the item, inasmuch as atmospheric humidity and/or moisture diffusing from the filling material to the diaphragm will lead, after a certain time, to softening of such a diaphragm in spite of the protective measure, considering that the effort of sealing the item which can be expended within the framework of a method of the above-mentioned type must not be too extensive.
Another objective of the technique disclosed in this U.S. patent resides in dispensing the filling material after a predetermined time period during which the container is subjected to the washing process. The dissolution time of the aforementioned diaphragm is utilized for this purpose, and the above remarks demonstrate that a time delay that is even merely halfway regulated can hardly be realized, for example due to the previously prevailing, indefinite initial conditions with respect to environmental humidity.
Furthermore, the aforementioned diaphragm, once uncovered, is extremely sensitive during the washing process to spotwise mechanical stresses, and is apt to rupture prior to its planned dissolution time when subjected to point-like stresses by the laundry.
Another method, similar to the above-discussed type, has been known from EP-A-0,152,359. According to this reference, initially opened outlets are provided in a container, i.e. no triggering or activation of the delivery of filling material is realized during the laundering process. However, dispenser means that are already open at the instant of deploying the container have the inherent danger that the filling material, especially the liquid detergent, flows out already before the actual washing process begins and contacts the laundry in high concentration at an undesirably early point in time. This can give rise to spot formation, such as when the washing material is laundry, or the prematurely dispensed filling material can already flow to the drain before it has done its work at all.
It is an object of the present invention to further develop a method and, respectively, a container of the above-mentioned type so that the delivery of filling material during the washing process is regulated without having to provide in this process complicated, sensitive elements specifically for this purpose, such as the sealing diaphragms dissolving under the action of moisture, known from U.S. Pat. No. 3,399,806.
This has been attained, in a method of the kind discussed above, by regulating the delivery of the filling material from the container by the action of force exerted on the container during the washing process.
In this procedure, use is made of the fact that, during the mechanical laundering procedure, forces act on every item subjected to the laundering step, these forces, on account of the mechanical stresses, differing substantially from the forces in a stationary environment. Thereby, a variable has actually been discovered, with the aid of which a discrimination can be made of whether or not the container is involved in the washing process.
In a highly simple manner, at least two parts displaceable relatively to each other by external force application are provided at the container in this arrangement, these parts, during the relative movement, vacating and, respectively, blocking the delivery means. Since usually such a container is subjected to the washing process together with material to be laundered, such as, for example and especially, with laundry, the container is exposed to pressure forces engaging in a more or less random fashion over the time period and thus, even after the beginning of the laundering process, time and again assuming directions causing the parts displaceable relatively to each other to be actually mutually displaced, thus releasing the delivery.
On account of the fact that the regulating force action is counteracted by a predetermined, preferably predeterminable counterforce, the objective is attained that the force effect required for triggering the dispensing step is determined in the manner of a threshold value. For example, considering a washing process for laundry, the effects of the force as soon as the laundry has been wetted down are substantially higher than in case of laundry that is still dry. Due to the fact that, as mentioned above, a counterforce is given or is predeterminable along the lines of a maximally optimal setting of the instant of delivery, it becomes possible to determine the washing process stages which, with corresponding force exertion, are to trigger the delivery.
As mentioned above, the force during the washing process acts on the container with a more or less accidentally oriented direction so that, considering a region of the container, stressing forces occur time and again in a specific direction. Taking this into account, it is possible to make a rough determination of the time delay with which delivery is to be triggered during the washing process, by releasing such delivery once a predetermined amount of work has been performed under the effect of the force, i.e. when a certain displacement path has been traversed.
In order to attain the above-mentioned object, a container according to this invention is furthermore distinguished in that the control part is displaceable by an essentially centrally oriented action of force on the container. A frictional force is employed with preference from a constructional viewpoint as the counterforce along the above lines, by providing that the preferably two, mutually displaceable container parts are shiftable in a frictional fashion.
On account of the fact that the friction force is designed to be adjustable, for example by placing a friction seat under different tension settings or making the parts of different roughness, a determination can be made of the amounts of force to be expended for opening the dispensing aperture, for example in a laundry washing process this being the degree of wetness of the washed laundry.
The invention will be described in greater detail below by way of example with reference to the drawings.